Background information

Employment Relationship Act (Zakon o delovnih razmerjih, ZDR-1) stipulates that change of place where the employee carries out his work is one of the circumstances which require a new employment contract. It assures that both worker and employer agree upon it. Normally, if a worker starts to work at home:

• the employer must conclude a new employment contract;
• the Labour Inspectorate must be informed;
• employer must pay compensation to the worker for the material costs (maximum five per cent of the average national salary);
• employer is fully responsible for the health and safety of workers.

Notwithstanding the general rule, the employer can request work from home without worker’s consent in cases of natural or other disasters, though only while such circumstances pertain.

Content of measure

The COVID-19 pandemic is such a circumstance when employers are massively sending their employees home. While the law gives employers the right to request telework from employees in cases of natural or other disasters, it fails to specify it. On 5 March 2020, the Ministry for Labour, Family, Social Affairs, and Equal Opportunities (MDDSZ) issued recommendations on what employers should specify by requiring telework (types and range of work, working time, mandatory availability of worker, control over work and reporting, means of work, health and safety at work …).

Employer organisations have proposed to simplify the procedure, as reported in SI-2020-24/1102 . The first step was undertaken by the sixth COVID-19 law (ZIUOPDVE), adopted by the Parliament on 25 November 2020. It implemented a simplifying procedure for reporting telework to the Labour Inspectorate via SPOT e-services . By registering telework, employer must include information about:

• employer (name, address, ID number, activity);
• teleworker (name, job title, short description of work, means of work, duration of telework);
• health and safety risks.

The eighth COVID-19 law ZDUOP, adopted on 3 February 2021, extends the simplified reporting until 31 December 2021.

Use of measure

According to a survey (with a representative sample of 527 respondents), teleworking considerably went down in the second wave. Sledilnik COVID-19 (an ad hoc group of volunteering scientists) reported that only about 35% worked at home (70% stayed at home during the first wave of the epidemic). Among those who continued to carry out their work on employers’ premises, 51% went to work regularly, 7% carried out half their work at the workplace, 7% most of their work at home. The reasons why they still go to work were the employer’s demand or their own decision.

Target groups

Workers	Businesses	Citizens
Applies to all workers	Applies to all businesses	Does not apply to citizens

Actors and funding

Actors	Funding
National government Social partners jointly	National funds

Social partners

Social partners' role in designing the measure and form of involvement:

	Trade unions	Employers' organisations
Role	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative	Agreed (outcome) incl. social partner initiative
Form	Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies	Consultation through tripartite or bipartite social dialogue bodies

Social partners' role in the implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:

• Social partners jointly
• Main level of involvement: Peak or cross-sectoral level

Involvement

The Economic and Social Council established a working committee for law changes. It discusses possibilities to simplify procedures and prevent risks associated with telework. The discussion has not yet been concluded.

Views and reactions

Social partners are supportive. Trade unions draw attention to the right to switch off as prevention against psychosocial risks associated with telework. The discussion has not yet been concluded.

Sources

• 05 March 2020: Ministry for labour, Opravljanje dela na domu [Teleworking (www.gov.si)
• 20 November 2020: Sledilnik COVID-19 (2020a), Večina še vedno na delovnih mesti (medium.com)
• 25 November 2020: Zakon o interventnih ukrepih za omilitev posledic drugega vala epidemije COVID-19 (ZIUOPDVE) [Act Determining Intervention Measures to Remedy the Consequences of the Second Wave of COVID-19 Epicemic (www.iusinfo.si)
• 04 February 2021: Act on Additional Measures for Mitigation of Consequences COVID-19 (Zakon o dodatnih ukrepih za omilitev posledic COVID-19, ZDUOP (www.pisrs.si)